A country, which has seen war almost during it’s whole existence, lives now in peace. Peace is very young, same as the majority of the population, who cannot remember cruel war-times.

Vietnam became a growing country, slowly getting used to peace. But war is recognizable on every organised bus tour and in every gift shop. If a travel guide tells about his country, a certain beginning of a sentence is never missing: “During the war…” 

Many people lost their children in the firestorm of bullets and bombshells. Today, as they are old now, they have big difficulties to survive. As they lost their children, the country lost it’s economical foundation.

But from zero there is just one way: going upwards. Vietnam’s economical development is exemplary in Asia, which is made possible by it’s ambitious population. Have a look on an example: A man is standing next to a street, in one of the crowded Mekong-Delta cities. His clothes are dirty. His pants are frayed and pierced. It’s seems as if this man doesn’t own anything, but this is a wrong impression. There’s a pump lying next to him on the sidewalk. In western countries nobody would recognize this, but here it’s essential. A bicycle is passing by. The front wheel seems to be pretty flat. Suddenly the man starts to pump air into it. In Vietnam people make a foundation out of “nothing”. But it remains to be only a foundation.

If this is sufficient for survival is doubtful in many cases. Many young people from the rural areas are forced to move to the cities in order to find a job. This is not a typical Vietnamese problem, but it happens in every third world country all over the planet- nevertheless it is quite a tragedy for the holding together of a family and the whole structure of society.

On it’s website the U.N. confirms, that Vietnam is sky-rocketing among development countries with exemplary growth rates and so became a little Asian tiger. But we should not forget, that the economical growth accompanied with inflation often forgets the poor in the remote rural areas and the difference between rich and poor is getting bigger and bigger. This does especially concern ethnic minorities, who make up 14% of the whole population.

This is the situation, where Maitreya-Fonds`s work comes in. It’s roots go back into a time, in which Vietnam’s population had to bear huge suffering. In that time, the early 60’s, there was a group of social workers, which started to help the people, to rebuild their bombed villages. 
In Saigon Venerable Thich Nhât Hanh founded the “School of the young for social services”, in which young people were educated in a spiritual as well as in a practical way, to solve this difficult task. They acted out of compassion. They were brave. Many of them died, but their work has been continued and it will be continued. We want to help with the available donations. Social workers in Vietnam, who receive a salary about 55,00 € per month, help needy people according to the Maitreya-Fonds Budget. Those are people, who depend on direct help as old and handicapped people or kindergarten-teachers, in order that they don’t move into the cities, but stay in the countryside and continue to work for the children’s benefit. We help, so parents can go to work and don’t have to worry about, who is taking care of their children. In the year 2010 there are 351 kindergarten-teachers, who get their salary from us, taking care of 4638 children altogether. Among them there are 796 very poor children, who receive a warm meal in the afternoon paid by the Maitrey-Fonds. Our social workers work exclusive in especially poor regions and many of our projects do also support ethnic minorities. Vietnam suffers from natural desastres each year. Cyclones, floods, dry periods, mountain decline and forest fires affect the people pretty bad, but even more the poorest of the poor people. Annually many families lose everything, they have and sometimes peoples’ lives too. Being homeless, impassable roads, rotten bridges and missing aid make the situation even more difficult to come over. What the people in this country are missing, is not a cell phone, not a TV and not a computer. What these people are in need of, is hope. 
Everyone of us knows, how it is to be left alone with our problems. We know, how it is to be uncertain. We know how it is, to stand in front of a deep dark whole. And we know also about the wonderful feeling of a hand holding us in such hours. It is not necessary, that this hand has to arrange our whole life again. It is also good, if it is just there, so we know, that we are not yet forgotten. Our social workers in Vietnam help, where people are most in need. They are driving to the kindergarten, to the vocational schools, to the students, to the old and the handicapped people. We have the opportunity to help them. We provide the financial foundation, so the social engagement can work. Therefore it is absolutely necessary, that continuity is our major principle. If a hand holds us, we can rise sometimes and maybe someday, we can even walk alone. But if we are forgotten, it’s very difficult for us, to get on our feet again. But not only a holding hand at the right time, also the intelligent leaving at the right time is important, in order that these people can develop their own potential. Maitreya-Fonds wants to reach out a helping hand to the poor people of Vietnam. With your donations you will become a part of this hand.